That helped the elementals with their supreme goal—infecting five million fae with their influence in order to complete the ritual that would bring about the end of days. We were currently at 3.5 million fae. Despite our quarantine and protective measures, GASP had yet to stop the number from going higher. Every day, dozens more fae were brought into the sanctuaries and sheltered in crystal casings, while the rest of the world suffered, knowing that nature itself no longer wanted us to exist. The ritual was abnormal and illogical, but the Hermessi had gotten it into their heads that it was time to try again, especially since Death had stopped their previous attempt.
All we could do was keep fighting, resist their influence, and find Death, so she would stop them. There were questions as to why she hadn’t intervened yet, but I had a feeling only she could tell us the reason. Needless to say, I was a mass of pins and needles at this point, trying to find the right direction in the midst of pure chaos.
But Eira had asked the right question: What would we do, now?
“We can’t sit here much longer,” I eventually said. Around us, millions of aspen and bamboo-like trees covered hundreds and hundreds of miles. I took a moment to properly analyze this stunning, eerily quiet view.
A sea of green stretched out, seemingly forever. The wind blew gently through the trees, and the sound of leaves rustling and birds singing had given me a mild sense of comfort over the past four hours. Sprinkled across the landscape were roaring waterfalls that tumbled down from stony peaks and hundred-mile-wide plateaus that grew into mountains farther out. Slim rivers snaked through the woods, revealing their blue waters here and there in crude green and flowery clearings where animals stopped to drink. I didn’t have Varga’s True Sight, but the view was remarkably clear and breathtaking. To the west, grandiose keys and wooded crevices crept through the forests, leaving room for rivers to meet and flow thicker into the horizon.
“Varga and his team are back on Calliope now, but they can’t stay there for much longer,” Lumi replied, looking at me. “Even with the Devil’s Weed on them, they’re still a target for the Hermessi, much like us.”
“I would’ve wanted us to find the Nekronos system together.” I sighed, shaking my head slowly. But, with every hour that passed, I began to consider the possibility that we might not make it back in time to regroup with Varga and get to Mortis, where Death supposedly dwelled.
“That might not happen, unless Phoenix finds us first. And he needs to find Mortis before he finds us,” Lumi said. “Reaching out to Death is a priority, given the current fae numbers.”
Eira got up, wearing a half-smile and a glimmer of curiosity in her ocean-colored eyes. “So, do we explore this place, at least, and come back to this cliff when it’s time to leave?”
“That might be a good idea,” Amelia replied. “There’s nothing left for me to do here. We might as well see what this place is like.”
“I’ll lose my mind if we don’t get moving,” Raphael grumbled.
I couldn’t blame him. I couldn’t blame any of them. None of us were made to wait in silent limbo while someone came to rescue us. We were the ones who usually did the rescuing, after all.
Varga’s voice came through in my head, thanks to our still-active Telluris link. “Telluris, Taeral! Tae, you there?”
“I am. What’s up? Where are you?” I asked.
“Oh, we’re on Mount Zur, waiting for Phoenix to give us Mortis’s and your location. But that’s not what I wanted to talk about,” he replied, and I could tell from his voice that something was off.
“What’s wrong?”
“Um… You’re not going to like it, and I’m sorry you’re out there, somewhere, and not here…”
“Varga, get on with it,” I said, my nerves quickly stretching to newfound limits.
“It’s your dad. Sherus. He… He’s under the Hermessi’s influence.”
The silence that followed as he waited for my response was deafening. The news had hit me like a punch, right in the gut. My knees turned to mush, my legs no longer able to hold me. I slipped down to the nearest rock and exhaled sharply.
Lumi, Amelia, Raphael, and Eira were all watching me, eyes wide and curious. Varga had only reached out to me via Telluris. They didn’t know yet. I glanced up at them, my heart aching.
“My father. He’s now among the more than 3.5 million fae under the Hermessi’s influence,” I managed, then turned my attention back to Varga, despite the gasps erupting from my crew. “Varga, do you know how it happened?”
“Nuriya isn’t sure, but she suspects it was a non-fae cult member. All six of his new guards are currently in detention, pending an investigation,” he said.
After GASP had begun placing the fae in quarantine, they had agreed to assign GASP agents to protect the leadership of our allies’ planets. My parents had been given a detail of six vampires and werewolves. According to Varga, the Hermessi might’ve gotten to one of them. Deep down, I had known it was only a matter of time before my father became a victim, too, especially since he was such a high-profile target, but it still hurt me deeply. It made my plight all the more desperate, because I had an additional and extremely important reason to succeed in this endeavor of ours. If I didn’t, my father would perish, and I couldn’t, for the life of me, consider failure as an option.
“How’s Mom?” I asked Varga. “How is she holding up?”
“Dude, your mother is a freaking warrior queen,” Varga replied. “She’s keeping it together, and she’ll be overseeing the interrogations. Sherus is in the sanctuary on the Fire Star now. He’s in good hands, so don’t worry about him for now.”
“That’s an impossible thing to ask of me,” I murmured.
“I know. But I… we need you to keep your head in the game,” Varga said.
I nodded, looking at my team again. “Rest assured, V, I’m focused on our mission, now more than ever. There’s nothing I can do about my dad, and I know Mom is there to make sure nothing happens to him. It’s on us, now. It’s on us to carry on and stop the Hermessi.”
“I’m sorry it got to this,” Varga replied. “We’ll keep you updated on Phoenix’s progress. In the meantime, if there’s anything else, we’ve got Telluris. Don’t hesitate to use it.”
“I won’t, thanks.” I sighed.
“Taeral…” Eira tried to speak but bit her lower lip instead. I had a feeling she couldn’t find the right words to say, given the circumstances. I found her awkwardness endearing, and I remembered that I was still in charge of her safety and wellbeing.
“I think we should get moving,” I said, giving everyone a brief nod. “This world has Hermessi in it, so I don’t want us to linger too long in one place. You heard Raphael: he’s about to lose his mind. The last thing we need is a psychotic Perfect.”
Raphael chuckled softly and gave me a friendly pat on the back. “That’s the spirit.”
We made our way down the cliff and through the woods, heading north. At ground level, the trees were spectacularly tall, and the moon’s persistent shine began to falter. Many seemed to defy gravity, their slender trunks in seeming opposition to their nearly impossible height. The deeper we went, the green crowns above thickened enough to pull the darkness over us. I snapped my fingers and produced a small flame in the palm of my hand—enough to help us see ahead as we conquered mile after mile of strange wilderness. The top side view had been well lit. Down here, the shadows reigned.
“There are animals here,” Amelia said, her gaze darting left and right, her pupils dilating and her nostrils flaring. I had to give credit to vampires—their senses were extraordinary, especially in the dark. “Small ones, a few rodent types… some kind of deer with extremely long and straight antlers… and predators. There are some predators in the area.”
“What kind?” Herakles asked. “Big and slow, or feline types that could easily pounce on us?”
Amelia shook her head. “Somewhere in between. Some species of bear with black fur… I saw a couple of wolves, or creatures similar to wolves. I’ll call them wolves, for now. But they’re keeping their distance.”
“Good. I’d hate to end up as lunch,” Lumi muttered, prompting Raphael to chuckle.
“Are you trying to make Eira feel better?” he asked.
